CinemascopeLast month's silver screen stars

November 2009

Aries
Man’s instinct and ability to recklessly fight for his survival, disregarding all costs, is an unpopular yet important characteristic of Aries. For the protagonists in “Carriers”, a thriller about a deadly viral pandemic that is quickly killing the whole population, following their survival instincts without hesitation is the only chance. In a suspenseful and fast-paced way the movie also shows the arising conflicts between self-preservation (Aries) and empathy (Cancer), social responsibility (Capricorn) and relationships (Libra).

Taurus Reminding me a little of Almodovar, the Spanish comedy “Chef's Special” (“Fuera de carta”) is a passionate and sensual story about a gay restaurant owner, trying to cope with his children after his ex-wife dies, a sex-starved female restaurant employee and a cute new neighbor, who becomes the object of desire for both. Taurus-typical sensuality and delight in pleasure is also expressed in some beautifully composed images, though these left me hungry for some real and more substantial, rich Almodovar-fare.

Gemini
A tour-bus filled with international tourists is traveling through Greece, visiting all the typical tourist features in a week – this is Gemini: see as much as possible as quickly as possible. The motley group of unspectacular people is accompanied by tour guide Georgia, who is trying to get used to being single without liking it and gets involved with the bus driver. “My Life in Ruins” is a facile and fluffy comedy about how a range of quickly varying trivia can lead to more fun and easiness – which is definitely an analogy of Gemini.

Cancer
In „Away we go“ a couple, awaiting their first child, is searching for the right paradigm and place to model their future family-life. A light-handed, entertaining depiction of various family models and the focusing on the couple’s search and doubts about lifestyles and their own needs and wishes represents also Gemini-energy. But since the movie particularly draws a lovingly observed picture about the couple’s emotional changes, which are going along with the process of becoming parents and settling down, it mainly puts Cancer-motifs in the center of attention.

Leo A
documentary with Leo-features? Quite unusual. But “This is it” is a documentary, that shows the recently deceased Michael Jackson in rehearsals for his planned concerts. And the film celebrates the “King of Pop”, his stardom, his uniqueness as an artist and his charisma as well as the whole creative process, developing under Jackson’s leadership, shining in his glamour and accomplished in a big team, which – very Leo-like – resembles
the royal court of a great king. .

Virgo
An overweight, shy supermarket night security-guard falls in love with
a janitor, who works there and whom he first observes on his monitors,
but soon also while following her through the dull suburban streets
of Montevideo. His lack of self-confidence prevents him from approaching
the desired woman. Instead he follows special routines and develops
little
rituals in order to get closer to her. The Virgo-quality of “Gigante” is
also found in the laconic minimalism, that pictures the unspectacular
everyday-life and the humble circumstances of ordinary people, and
as well in the small and common incidents and problems it is about.

Libra“The Ugly Truth” is a truly amusing romantic comedy, drawing its entertaining wit from the confrontation between the Libra-features, which are typical for the genre and the Aries-motif of straightforward, sex-oriented masculinity. A refined, slightly cool TV-producer lets her radical macho-employee coach her about men and seduction in order to conquer the man of her dreams. Well, (as it often is with relationships) the end is predictable, but the path to it is quite amusing…

Scorpio
The intense horror-movie “Orphan”, called “shamelessly effective” by US-critic Roger Ebert, revolves around an infernally evil child. A troubled family – alcohol abuse, stillborn child… – adopts the nine year old, orphaned Esther. Bad things start happening… As in every good horror film the emergence of evil also drags the psychological conflicts and hidden problems of the “good” characters into the open – Scorpio’s and Pluto’s favorite pastime…

Sagittarius In a truly Sagitterian manner “Pope Joan” (“Die Päpstin”) is a luxuriously outfitted big production about a legendary character. It is the story about a young woman, who already as a child starts fighting for the opportunity to learn in spite of her gender, who for that purpose later enters a convent disguised as a man and finally even gets to the Vatican and on the Pope’s chair. Historians are debating the truth of a female Pope and the story is thus even more interesting. A woman on a mission advocates intellectual freedom, searches for knowledge and wisdom and becomes principal religious leader – that’s a Sagittarian biography par excellence.

Capricorn
Michael Hanekes new film “The White Ribbon” (“Das weiße Band”) is about the effects of repressive upbringing and abusive fatherly authority. Filmed in strict black and white, the reduced narrative style as well as the atmosphere of subliminal menace speaks of Capricorn with a strong streak of Scorpio. Since innocence and purity are also central motifs as are mysterious evil deeds, we can even distinguish October’s Virgo-Saturn and Pluto in Capricorn.

Aquarius“Land of the Lost” is a quirky science-fiction-comedy, that doesn’t shy away from nonsense and bad taste. Experimenting with his self-made quantum-transition-machine, a scientist, together with his female assistant and a redneck survivalist, ends up in a parallel universe. This alien world is populated with a multitude of bizarre characters and life forms, who are not always very pleased with the strangers.

Pisces
Park Chan-Wook, director of films as different as “Oldboy” and “I’m a Cyborg, but That’s Okay”, made a Vampire-film: In “Thirst” (“Bakjwi”), a selfless, devoted priest – a beautiful Pisces-archetype – volunteers for an experimental vaccination against a mysterious illness and becomes a vampire (a classic Scorpio-archetype) because of an infected blood transfusion. Visually impressive the film tells about his inner conflicts and about an obsessive yet tender lovestory.

Vesna Ivkovic

Vesna
Ivkovic studied literature and linguistics, sociology, philosophy and
history and as well took a profound interest in psychology, mythology
and different belief systems. Along the way she also explored various
paths of body awareness such as the martial arts of Kung Fu, Dance,
Yoga, Qi Gong and several other methods of body work and motion arts.
In 1993 she discovered astrology as an instrument of knowledge and graduated
in 2004 in Markus Jehle's and Petra Niehaus' master class at the Astrology
Center Berlin. You can find out more about the author and her work on
her own website www.astrosemiotics.de

The Cinemascope is meant to give an overview of current movies and their main themes from an astrosemiotical perspective (i.e.: regarding film as semiotic system and translating it into the astrological semiotic system). A well made movie not only has a story and a certain theme, it also provides a special atmosphere, a certain feeling and it draws us into its very own world. This basic quality that is contrived through characters, plot, setting and many other components also translates into one or more astrological principles. Quite simply: a fast-paced action-flick confronts us with plain Aries energy, a horror-movie evokes Scorpio-like abysmal depths and fears etc. We step out of the theatre and – if the film succeeded in sucking us in – find ourselves dwelling on and engaging in that special energetic quality.

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